Governance

Bill has served the Big Train as its team historian, volunteer coordinator, Booster Club secretary, and souvenir program editor. Originally from Chicago, Bill lives in Rockville where he has co-founded the Rockville Baseball Hall of Fame. A member of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR), he chaired its Pictorial History Committee for ten years. Prior to his retirement, Bill served in senior positions such as Director, Office of Medicaid Policy, at the Health Care Financing Administration, now known as CMS.

Stan, a professor at Penn State University’s Dickinson Law School, Stan served as general counsel of the United States House of Representatives under Speaker Tip O’Neill. For three decades, Stan was Vice President of Minor League Baseball where he was responsible for minor league baseball’s government relations. A resident of Rockville, Stan has coached in the Rockville Baseball Association (RBBA).

Jamie is a decorated Iraq War Combat Veteran now serving as a lawyer for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. A lifelong baseball fan, Jamie and his family live in Kensington where he founded Kensington's Juneteenth Celebration. Jamie is a board member of Montgomery History.

Billy Gordon, a Rockville native and current Olney resident, is an expert on the history of the Negro Leagues and Black community baseball in Montgomery County. Billy’s athletic talents won him a place in the Richard Montgomery High School Athletics Hall of Fame (2012) and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Basketball Hall of Fame (2004/2012). He earned a Masters Degree in Education at Howard University and served the Montgomery County Public Schools for 38 years, ten as a teacher and 28 as an administrator. Both Billy and his two sons proudly began their athletic careers with the Rockville Baseball Association. Billy’s son Keith played for the Cincinnati Reds.

Linda has been a baseball fan for most of her life.  If she and her family are not at Povich Field supporting Big Train, they are probably at Nationals Park. They have welcomed Big Train players into their family since 2014 and maintain contact with them.  Her son Adrian is an assistant to Coach G at the Big Train Summer Camps and has unofficially reserved his seat along the third baseline.  She grew up in Pennsylvania and now lives in Chevy Chase with her husband Mike and son. Linda received her DDS and PhD from the University of Maryland. She is currently Director of Orthodontics at MedStar Washington Hospital Center and Children’s National Medical Center, and Co-Director of the National Orofacial Institute.  She maintains a private practice in Orthodontics in Chevy Chase.  She also serves on an Advisory Board to Gillette Children’s Hospital in St Paul, Minnesota and the Dreams for Kids Foundation.

Manny is a second generation Cuban-American from Silver Spring. He has lived and worked in the DC area for 37 years since moving up from Miami to attend Georgetown University. He serves as Executive Director of Shepherd’s Table and prior to that served for nine years as Executive Director of the Latino Economic Development Center. He helped organize Big Train’s first Latino Baseball Heritage Night in 2009 when Roberto Clemente’s jersey number was retired. In 2016, he helped organize the Cal Ripken Sr. League’s trip to Cuba to play a series of exhibition games against professional teams in Matanzas, Pinar del Rio, and Havana.

Dick is a recent retiree from MCPS as the TV supervisor in the office of communications. He is a lifelong baseball fan and a graduate of Penn State University. He and Karen have attended many Big Train games since their inception 25 years ago. Both enjoy doing volunteer work in the community such as working with Food and Friends in Washington DC, and the Germantown Upcounty Hub for those families in need of food and diapers. As we enter our 26th season of Big Train baseball at Shirley Povich field, its been our pleasure to be part of the BT team.

Rachel was raised in Potomac where her family became early Bethesda Big Train fans. Over the span of a decade, hosting players and serving as an inaugural member of the team’s Leadership Council, Rachel credits the Big Train volunteer community for jump-starting her career. After earning a bachelor’s from James Madison University and master’s from Georgetown, Rachel now works at Monumental Sports and Entertainment, managing suites for Capital One Arena’s +200 events. She regularly ventures from her home in the Wharf to the third base stands in Povich.

A three term member of the Montgomery County Council, Hans secured funding to restore Johnson’s Park (the epicenter of our Black sandlots) and improve the Blair High School field (home of the Thunderbolts). A resident of Takoma Park, Hans has been a youth baseball coach for his son’s teams.

Jenn lives in Broad Run, VA and was introduced to the Big Train by her son Jack, who was a pitcher for the Big Train in the summer 2023 season. She is no newcomer youth baseball or to nonprofit organizations. Jenn has more than 10 years of experience in travel and showcase baseball. She started on the Board of Directors with the Virginia Stars before becoming the CFO of Stars Baseball upon their merger. She also runs two very successful restaurants — Denim & Pearls and Licorice Pizza located in Warrenton, VA — where she serves on the Fauquier Chamber Women’s Business Council as well as Experience Old Town Warrenton, the Main Street America nonprofit organization for Warrenton.

Seth Silber is co-owner of the Fredericksburg Nationals. He was integrally involved in the financing and construction of the stadium, and actively involved in key decisions regarding the operation of the business.  Seth serves on the Boards of numerous non-profits including the Fredericksburg Free Press, the Fredericksburg Area Museum, and Sunshine Baseball Foundation.  He is also a partner at the law firm Wilson Sonsini in their antitrust practice in Washington, D.C.  Seth and his wife Stacy have lived in Montgomery County since 1991, and both their children played youth baseball and softball throughout their childhoods.

Alex has spent his entire adult life around the Big Train, serving as the club’s Assistant General Manager and then General Manager from 2001 to 2005. He went on to become the first Executive Director of the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League and served a season as the League’s commissioner in 2013 before helping the league transition to its current leadership. Alex still serves as an advisor to the league. He is a partner of Prestige-Ledroit Distributing Co., a distributor of premium wine and spirits in the DC area.